The Bombay High Court has recently granted bail to Chartered Accountants and ten others in the bank fraud case filed on the basis of a complaint by the General Manager of Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), Mumbai. The accused had allegedly acquired a loan from the IOB to the tune of Rs. 292.20 Crores.
A case was registered by CBI EOB, in 2017 based on the complaint of the General Manager, Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), Mumbai against Chartered Accountant as well as Directors of M/s PAL and other unknown persons/public servants.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) special court had issued Non-Bailable Warrants (NBWs) against the accused and kept them in custody, after the charge sheet was filed.
“if the Investigating Officer did not deem it necessary to arrest the accused during the course of investigation, there is no need to effect the arrest now, when the investigation is complete and the charge sheet is filed, particularly when all the Applicants have deep roots in the society and there is no likelihood of them fleeing the course of justice”, the Bombay High Court observed from Siddharth vs State of U.P. (2021) and the latest decision of Apex court in the case of Satender Antil vs CBI (2022).
The Bombay High Court Single Bench further observed that “When the charge sheet is carefully perused, it becomes apparent that the investigation is largely premised on the documentary evidence. The accusation of criminal conspiracy levelled in the charge sheet will ultimately have to be established by the prosecution during trial.”
The accused were alleged of inflating the turn over, sale, purchase, profit figures etc. in the balance sheet, in a systematic manner to avoid its detection by any statutory agency including the banks.
The accused bail appellants were charged with commission of offences punishable under Section 120-B read with 420, 467, 468, and 471 of the Indian Penal Code and 13(2) read with 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, for cheating IOB and thus caused wrongful loss of Rs.297.56 Crores to IOB and corresponding wrongful gain to themselves. The amount was classified as Non-Performing Asset on 01.07.2015.
It was also observed by Justice Bharati Dangre that “It is noted by me that there is no denial by the CBI that the Applicants were never arrested during investigation, but on the charge sheet being filed the CBI Court has detained them by refusing to release them, when they produced themselves before the Court. There is no apprehension expressed by CBI that the Applicants will abscond.”, granting bail to the accused chartered accountant and others.
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